Derivative sci-fi turns into fine bombastic action

Rating: 6/10 (25 May 2014)

It's 2019 and the world is contaminated. Lincoln 6 Echo (Ewan McGregor) lives in a golden cage, a futuristic facility where his every need is tended for. He is closely monitored and hopes to be chosen for The Island, the last pathogen free zone. He's been having disturbing nightmares and he keeps questioning his world. Everybody is childlike. The supervisors are hiding something from them. His friend Jordan 2 Delta (Scarlett Johansson) gets picked by the lottery. While exploring, he discovers that the facility is actually a farce. Lincoln witnesses a former lottery winner escaping from a botched surgery to remove his organs. He and his kind are clones. They are being used for spare parts. He escapes with Jordan followed by the corporate henchmen led by mercenary Albert Laurent (Djimon Hounsou).
Before the reveal, this is actually quite boring. The oddities make me scratch my head mostly. It's not interesting enough for me to ponder. I also find all the brand names very annoying. Why the clones need brand names is beyond me. And why is there a holographic projection? Those are just two of the many questionable things. The movie also feels derivative of other better sci-fi. There are a lot of flashy bits and pieces to distract the audience. Once it switches after the escape, director Michael Bay uses all his expertise to make an above average action adventure movie. That's one thing he's great at. The man knows how to do action. The car chase with the railroad axles come off great. It almost makes me forget all the questions I have.